France gets greenlight to expand games tax breaks for more devs

France has been given the greenlight by the European Commission to expand its games tax breaks to more developers.

The decision makes way for the minimum eligibility limit for productions to be lowered to €100,000. It is hoped this will mean a wider variety of studios will now be able to claim tax incentives once the changes are implemented.

Other changes include making games for adults eligible under the criteria – subject to the absence of scenes of extreme violence.

According to French Video Games Trade Assocation (the SNJV) the greenlight paves the way for the “imminent entry into force of the reform”.

SNJV president Guillaume de Fondaumière, a key figure in campaigning for France’s tax breaks over the years, said he hopes the changes will ensure that the country not only retains jobs in the industry, but that it attracts investment from overseas.

“The greenlight from Brussels concerning the new terms of the video game tax credit is excellent news for the entire sector,” he said.

“It will allow a much larger number of studios to benefit from a reduction in their production costs and, in particular, studios which create very popular games for the web or mobile platforms.

“This measure will now allow companies already based in France to maintain many jobs. It may also convince leading international stakeholders to set up or relocate to our country rather than elsewhere in the world, something which would strengthen the entire French video game ecosystem.”